This invention relates to dental drills and more particularly to a drill capable of supplying water and aspirating fluid and air.
In carrying out dental drilling operations, it is often necessary to provide a fluid in the area being drilled to wash away the debris and keep the area free and clean from blood, or other contaminants. As a result, water is often sprayed simultaneously with the drilling operation. Such spraying is frequently provided by a separate water conveying tube from a separate fluid delivering surgical instrument. Sometimes, it is connected to the drill itself to thereby remove the need for a separate surgical instrument to provide the water. The water is typically discharged adjacent to the rotating burr so that as it strikes the burr it is formed into a mist which sprays onto the drilling area.
An additional problem, however, results from using the water to clean the drilling area. While the fluid in the form of the water does remove the debris and contaminant from the area being drilled, the detrimental effects of the water which is dispersed into the mist by means of the rotating burr, in many cases overpowers the beneficial results desired. For example, after the water strikes the rotating burr and forms into a mist, the mist can fog up the mirror or other instrument being used by the dentist or technician and requires frequent cleaning of those instruments during the course of the drilling operation. Additionally, the water must be removed from the mouth of the patient. Usually, water is removed by means of hanging a fluid aspirator into the patient's mouth. However, this merely provides low volume aspiration. The major portion of the fluid is generally removed by means of a high speed suction which is hand held by an assistant. However, the mist has a tendancy of jumping in all directions including the exterior of the mouth and therefore the mist can be aspirated by the dentist and the assistant. Additionally, the patient himself may aspirate some of the water in the form of the mist which will cause additional problems to the patient.
A further problem exists with standard drilling assemblies. The burr is usually driven by means of an air turbine which requires a flow of air to be supplied to the turbine head under pressure to drive the turbine thereby rotating the burr. The air then escapes from the drill head assembly after turning the turbine. The escape of such air creates a high pitched whine which is most annoying to the patient.
Thus, the standard dental drilling apparatus is noisy, produces a mist which can be aspirated by the dentist, assistant and patient, and requires the need of additional personnel to aspirate the fluid and air in the area of the drilling operation.